Push-ups are one of the most fundamental and popular bodyweight exercises out there. The movement is simple - just using your arms to push your body up and down off the floor. Yet push-ups are also highly effective, working multiple muscle groups at once including the chest, shoulders, triceps, and core.
With push-ups being so straightforward to perform, many people focus on banging out as many reps as possible during their workouts. They treat push-ups as a quantity over quality exercise. However, when proper push-up form is neglected, it not only limits potential muscle and strength gains, but it can also lead to overuse injuries over time.
This article will explore the common mistakes people make when doing push-ups and provide tips to help you fix your form. By focusing on push-up quality rather than quantity, you’ll get more out of this classic exercise while keeping your joints happy. We’ll cover key pointers on elements like:
- Maintaining proper body alignment
- Optimal hand placement and arm positioning
- Achieving full range of motion
- Correct shoulder blade movement
Learning these form fixes will make your push-ups more challenging initially. But with perfect push-up technique, you’ll build more upper body strength and muscle than ever.
1: Proper Body Position
Achieving proper alignment in your lower body is crucial for executing perfect push-ups. Without a stable foundation, it’s impossible to maintain good form as fatigue sets in. An arched back, sticking your butt in the air, and lack of tension through the midsection are common issues that stem from poor positioning in the pelvis and hips. This chapter explains how to set up your body correctly.
1.1 Tuck Pelvis and Brace Core
You want a neutral spine position, not an excessive arch or round in your lower back. Focus on tilting your pelvis slightly backward by pulling your belly button in towards your spine. Actively brace your core by tightening your abdominal muscles. This will help prevent your midsection from sagging or arching as you perform reps.
1.2 Squeeze Glutes
In conjunction with the pelvic tilt, consciously squeeze your glutes. This helps lock your core into a rigid plank position preventing hyperextension of the spine. Glute engagement also stabilizes your legs so you don’t end up pushing mostly with your quads and knees.
1.3 Create Full-Body Tension
Proper shoulder, lat, and leg tension complements your engaged core and glutes. Think about pressing yourself actively into the floor rather than letting your body weight sink passively into your joints. This takes pressure off the shoulders and enhances total body stability for fluid reps. Practice rock-solid alignment in plank position before adding push-up movement.
By learning to initiate push-ups from an aligned lower body position, it takes the exercise to a more functional, core-intensive level. Your technique and strength results will improve drastically if you nail this crucial foundation.
2: Arm and Hand Placement
Proper hand and arm positioning is vital for distributing load effectively in the shoulders while working the targeted muscle groups in the chest and triceps.
2.1 Standard Push-up Hand Placement
The standard push-up placement is directly underneath the shoulders, generally about shoulder-width apart. When viewed from the side, your wrists should stack vertically under the shoulders rather than out in front of or behind them. This allows maximal recruitment of the pectorals and delts in the pushing motion while minimizing strain on the joint capsules.
For example, if your hands are set too far forward, the shoulder capsules get stretched backwards increasing impingement risk. Conversely, setting hands too far back forces excessive forward shoulder hunching.
2.2 Grips for Different Emphasis
You can modify hand width and angles to shift emphasis:
- Wide push-up grip - Sets hands beyond shoulder width, enhanced chest activation
- Narrow/diamond push-up grip - Sets hands close together, enhanced triceps activation
A narrower grip also increases range of motion and triceps involvement. Just be sure not to let the elbows flare excessively out to the sides.
2.3 Avoid Outward Elbow Flare
The elbows should point backward at about a 45 degree angle from the body rather than straight out. This keeps tension on the lats and minimizes strain on the shoulder joint capsule. Excessive flaring can impinge structures.
So optimal arm and hand placement sets up good skeletal alignment while allowing you to shift emphasis between muscle groups. Use a controlled width and don't allow elbows to flare outward.
3: Full Range of Motion
A full range of motion is vital for reaping the maximal benefits of push-ups and preventing injury. Partial reps cheat your muscles out of potential strength and size gains. This chapter covers tips for completing reps through a biomechanically sound ROM.
3.1 Descend Until Chest Nearly Touches Floor
The bottom position of the push-up involves maximal shoulder flexion and elbow flexion. Descend until your chest comes within an inch or two of touching the floor to access this position. Go any lower and the shoulders may excessively internally rotate. Stopping higher up cuts ROM. Let the elbows bend at least to 90 degrees as well.
3.2 Extend Arms Fully at the Top
At the top, actively focus on straightening the elbows completely. The shoulders should move into extension and external rotation to stack the joints. Failure to straighten the elbows reduces triceps activation. Not fully externally rotating the shoulders can impinge structures.
3.3 Maintain Straight Body Alignment
Throughout the entire push-up ROM, consciously maintain proper alignment. Don't allow the hips to sag toward the floor or the head/chest to droop as you descend. Keep the core braced to enable smooth execution between top and bottom positions.
Performing full ROM push-ups builds strength through complete joint mobility and dynamic muscle loading. The techniques above help maximize gains while protecting your shoulders and elbows. Quality trumps quantity when it comes to reps.
4: Shoulder Blade Movement
Actively controlling your shoulder blade position is key for centering and stabilizing the shoulder joints during push-ups. How the scapulae move dictates the type of load placed on the shoulders and upper back.
4.1 Shoulder Blades Pinch Together on Descent
As you lower your body, focus on initiating the movement by pinching the shoulder blades together down toward your spine. This retracts the scapulae enabling a stable platform for the humeral heads, minimizing impingement.
4.2 Shoulder Blades Spread Apart on Ascent
To press back up, think about actively spreading the shoulder blades away from the midline horizontally while keeping them depressed vertically. This upward rotation creates space in the shoulder capsule for clearance and elevation of the arms.
4.3 Don't Allow Passive Shoulder Collapse
Avoid simply letting your shoulder blades slam together down and inward uncontrolled on each rep. Actively control them both concentrically and eccentrically. Loose, passively collapsing shoulders cause poor positioning and overload. Keep the upper back engaged.
By learning proper scapular mechanics through the push-up ROM, you enhance shoulder stability. Master active depression on descent and upward rotation + elevation on ascent. Quality reps require controlled motion.
5: Common Mistakes to Avoid
While push-ups seem like a simple exercise, many subtle form errors can creep in. Being aware of these frequent flaws is key to perfecting technique. This chapter covers common push-ups mistakes and how to fix them.
5.1 Arching Lower Back
Over-arching the lumbar spine fatigues the core stabilizers leading to back pain and strain over time. Tilt your pelvis and brace properly to maintain neutral alignment.
5.2 Drooping Head Forward
Don't allow your chin to poke forward as you descend or back strength fades, rounding the shoulders. Keep your head neutral with eyes focused a few feet ahead.
5.3 Sticking Butt Up or Sagging Hips
Avoid upper and lower body misalignments like anterior pelvic tilt and low back hyperextension. Create tension linking shoulders to feet.
5.4 Partial Range of Motion
Descend until the elbow joint exceeds 90 degrees flexion for full chest and triceps activation in the bottom position.
5.5 Lack of Upper Back Tension
Consciously pull the shoulder blades down and back to support the pressing movement. Loose, unstable shoulders cause impingement.
By knowing these frequent form flaws in advance, you can self-assess and make corrections. Quality trumps quantity for safe, effective push-ups over the long run.
Conclusion
Performing proper push-ups requires attention to whole-body form, not just pumping out reps. By focusing on quality standards, you’ll gain more strength over time while avoiding overuse issues. Here’s a recap of the main points:
Main Points
- Set up in an aligned plank position before starting reps
- Control range of motion through the shoulders and elbows
- Consciously move the shoulder blades and stabilize them
- Brace core and glutes to maintain rigid alignment
- Allow slight elbow flare but avoid outward rotation
Emphasize Quality Over Quantity
Getting the form down may mean drastically reducing reps you can complete at first. But once your technique improves, you’ll gain the ability to crank out more push-ups structured around sound mechanics. Value quality.
Stick with It for Better Results
Perfect push-ups may seem impossibly hard as you focus on precision. But gradually you’ll build more shoulder, chest, and triceps endurance. Your core will become a rock. Fluidity through a full ROM will come. Stick with the progression.
Proper push-up form is challenging but pays huge dividends in shoulder health and strength capabilities. Don't neglect mastering it. Let me know in the comments if you have any questions!